This invention generally relates to devices for protecting a floor or surface and a bucket or scoop from costly wear and/or damage during material handling operations. More particularly, this invention relates to improvement of protective guard application to material handling equipment.
In material handling operations, heavy equipment and other vehicles equipped with plows, buckets, or scoops (components) are used to push, pull, or pick up various types of material, debris, and/or liquids. When undertaking these material-handling operations, the component routinely contacts the surface on which the material, debris and/or liquid resides. This routine contact causes damage to both the surface, which typically is concrete, and the component, which typically is made from carbon steel. The damage caused to the concrete and component is expensive to repair.
In order to mitigate the damage imparted to the concrete or other type of surface, and the component, others have attached wear guards to the component at the place where the component contacts the surface. These wear guards have been made from various materials, such as metal, used tire carcasses, and solid rubber. These wear guards are typically attached to the component using bolts mounted at fixed locations on the wear guard. In order to install these typical wear guards, the component owner must obtain a wear guard having a bolt pattern precisely matching the component's pre-existing bolt hole pattern, or drill holes in the component which correspond to the bolt pattern of a wear guard.
Yet another problem is that some wear guards are positioned on some vehicles such that the front of the wear guard is subject to impact damage. Usage of such wear guards results in frontal damage that pulls the wear guard out of contact with the floor, weakens the bond between the contacting portion of the guard and the more rigid supporting portion, or other problems. This damage to the front lip and the possible loss of adhesion of the elastomeric element results in improper scraping and the need to prematurely replace the wear guard.
Some embodiments of the present invention address these and other problems in novel and unobvious ways.